The Umbrella Academy: Apocalypse Suite is the first comic book limited series of The Umbrella Academy, created and written by musician Gerard Way and illustrated by Gabriel Bá. The series ran for six issues from September 2007 to February 2008. Cover art was provided by James Jean for this series only.
A trade paperback was released on June 18, 2008 which includes all six issues from The Apocalypse Suite, extracts from sketchbooks featuring early versions of characters, the short internet preview and the story from Free Comic Book Day 2007.
Synopsis[]
In an inexplicable worldwide event, forty-three extraordinary children were spontaneously born by women who'd previously shown no signs of pregnancy. Millionaire inventor Reginald Hargreeves adopted seven of the children; when asked why, his only explanation was, "To save the world."
These seven children form The Umbrella Academy, a dysfunctional family of superheroes with bizarre powers. Their first adventure at the age of ten pits them against an erratic and deadly Eiffel Tower, piloted by the fearsome zombie-robot Gustave Eiffel. Nearly a decade later, the team disbands, but when Hargreeves unexpectedly dies, these disgruntled siblings reunite just in time to save the world once again.
Issues[]
| Issue No. | Cover | Title | Summary | Published |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
At 10 years old, The Umbrella Academy stop an attack on Paris resulting in the Eiffel Tower taking off into space. 20 years later, The Umbrella Academy have split up after the disappearance of The Boy and the death of The Horror. Spaceboy, the former leader of the team finds out about the death of Sir Reginald Hargreeves. Returning to the Academy, he finds that his brother, The Boy, has returned but is still physically aged 10. | |||
 |
Spaceboy reunites with his brothers and sister at Sir Reginald Hargreeves's funeral. The Boy reveals he traveled to the future and found that the apocalypse had occurred three days after Sir Reginald Hargreaves's death. Vanya, the estranged member of the family who never showed any ability other than skills to play violin, goes to the Icarus Theater and is offered to join the Orchestra Verdammten, a group of musicians who claim they can destroy the world by playing the "Apocalypse Suite." | |||
 |
The Umbrella Academy fights the Terminatus, a group of destructive robots programmed by the academy's former nemesis, Dr. Terminal. Vanya intervenes in the fight only to be saved by The Kraken who holds a grudge against her for leaving the academy years ago. A resentful Vanya returns to the Icarus Theater and joins the Orchestra Verdammten. | |||
 |
Vanya is revealed to be in fact the most powerful of all her siblings and the conductor of the Orchestra experiments with her to unleash her power. The Boy and Dr. Pogo go to a café where The Boy is ambushed by a mysterious group of masked men carrying laser guns, and easily kills them. Vanya dubs herself "The White Violin" and proclaims the end of the Umbrella Academy and then the world. | |||
 |
Inspector Lupo investigates the crime scene where The Boy killed the mysterious masked men, while Spaceboy and The Rumor proclaim their love for each other and share a kiss. The Boy finds Sir Reginald Hargreaves' monocle, which allows someone to see everything about someone and he faints. The White Violin attacks The Umbrella Academy and Dr. Pogo dies in the process. | |||
 |
The Umbrella Academy prepare to stop the Apocalypse Suite, while The Kraken tries to kill The White Violin. The Rumor suffers a slashed throat and Spaceboy takes her to a nearby hospital, while the rest continue to fight the Orchestra Verdammten. The Boy shoots The White Violin in the head, but she survives. The Seance uses telekinesis to stop meteors falling to the earth and stops the end of the world. In the epilogue, The White Violin remains paralyzed and The Rumor will not be able to talk again. |
Awards and nominations[]
At the 2008 Eisner Awards, The Umbrella Academy: Apocalypse Suite won for Best Limited Series.
The Deluxe Edition of The Umbrella Academy: Apocalypse Suite was nominated for Best Graphic Album — Reprint at the 2009 Eisner Awards.
Sequel[]
A sequel, The Umbrella Academy: Dallas, was published between November 2008 and April 2009 and collected into a trade paperback on September 30, 2009.